WASHINGTON, Dec. 6—Recent progress in chalcogenide glass photonics has been driven by scientific and technological challenges in a variety of areas. These range from increased demand for bandwidth in optical communications, to the emergence of bio-health hazards associated with hazardous microorganisms that absorb at mid-infrared wavelengths, to defense applications that require bright mid-infrared sources. Additionally, chalcogenide glass provides a platform for fundamental investigations of light-matter interactions in nanophotonic structures, such as photonic crystals and metamaterials. To highlight breakthroughs in this area, Optics Express today published a special focus issue on Chalcogenide Photonics: Fabrication, Devices and Applications. The issue was organized and edited by Benjamin Eggleton, director of the Australian Research Council’s Centre for Ultrahigh-bandwidth Devices for Optical Systems and professor at the University of Sydney.

“This focus issue was created with the intent to represent the current state-of-the-art in the field of chalcogenide photonics,” said Eggleton. “The combination of their unique optical properties with the flexibility in tailoring the composition and fabrication methodology makes the chalcogenides compelling for photonics research and has stimulated research groups around the world to actively pursue this vibrant area.”

SUMMARY
Chalcogenide glasses contain as a major constituent one or more of the chalcogen elements from the periodic table (i.e. Sulphur, Selenium and Tellurium, but excluding Oxygen) covalently bonded to other elements such as As, Ge, Sb, Ga, Si, or P. Chalcogenide glasses have been studied since the 1950s due to their amazing optical properties. They have already found important applications in a number of areas, including the electronics industry and in imaging applications. In the last decade there has been renewed interest in these materials because of their unique optical nonlinear and midinfared properties. An optical material is said to be nonlinear if its optical properties depend on the intensity of the light, an effect that can lead to all-optical switching. The chalcogenide’s nonlinear optical properties are not only very strong (hundreds of times that of conventional glass), but also extremely fast (on the order of 10s of femtoseconds—the time it takes for light to travel only a fraction of a millimeter). The fast and strong nonlinearity of chalcogenides makes them attractive as ultrafast nonlinear devices, which can operate much faster than state-of-the-art electronics, or in efficient frequency conversion schemes. In contrast to conventional glass, chalcogenide glasses are transmissive well into the mid-infrared region (e.g. sulphides transmit to ~11mm) and are photosensitive to visible light.

This special issue reviews recent progress in this field with 13 invited articles from the leading groups in this field. This issue is comprehensive with articles that can be categorized into a number of areas: (i) chalcogenide material and device science, (ii) device fabrication, (iii) applications in nonlinear optics, and (iv) sensing applications.

KEY FINDINGS AND SELECTED PAPERS
The following papers are some of the highlights of the Optics Express focus issue on Chalcogenide Photonics. All are included in volume 18, issue 25 and can be accessed online at http://www.OpticsInfoBase.org/OE.

About Optics ExpressOptics Express reports on new developments in all fields of optical science and technology every two weeks. The journal provides rapid publication of original, peer-reviewed papers. It is published by the Optical Society and edited by C. Martijn de Sterke of the University of Sydney. Optics Express is an open-access journal and is available at no cost to readers online at http://www.OpticsInfoBase.org/OE.About OSA
Uniting more than 106,000 professionals from 134 countries, the Optical Society (OSA) brings together the global optics community through its programs and initiatives. Since 1916 OSA has worked to advance the common interests of the field, providing educational resources to the scientists, engineers and business leaders who work in the field by promoting the science of light and the advanced technologies made possible by optics and photonics. OSA publications, events, technical groups and programs foster optics knowledge and scientific collaboration among all those with an interest in optics and photonics. For more information, visit www.osa.org.